Breathable footwear

ABSTRACT

Described herein is an item of footwear that reduces the problem of moisture remaining in the cavity of an item of footwear by providing a simple way for different portions of the footwear to be separated, thereby facilitating more air circulation and resulting evaporation. In some implementations, the upper portion of the footwear may be removable from a lower portion of the footwear.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 61/940,618, filed Feb. 17, 2014 entitled “BREATHABLE FOOTWEAR,” which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Footwear, such as shoes, typically include different fabrics and materials that are shaped to form a cavity into which a person may place their foot. Some footwear include laces, straps, Velcro, etc. that can be adjusted by the person wearing the footwear to secure the footwear to their foot. To provide for variety in the styles of footwear and to allow previously worn footwear to dry or “air out,” many individuals often purchase multiple pairs of footwear; different pairs for different occasions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The use of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similar or identical components or features.

FIG. 1 is an example representation of an item of footwear, according to an implementation.

FIG. 2 is an example representation of a lower portion of an item of footwear, according to an implementation.

FIG. 3 is an example representation of an upper portion of an item of footwear, according to an implementation.

FIG. 4 is another example representation of an item of footwear, according to an implementation.

While implementations are described herein by way of example, those skilled in the art will recognize that the implementations are not limited to the examples or drawings described. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit implementations to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word “may” is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words “include,” “including,” and “includes” mean including, but not limited to.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This disclosure describes an item of footwear, such as a shoe, that allows the upper portion of the footwear to be removed from the bottom portion of the footwear. Typical footwear generally has a formed cavity that can be adjusted in size for securing the footwear to the user's foot, but does not enable portions of the footwear to be easily removed, separated or replaced. After an item of footwear has been worn for a period of time, the cavity into which the foot is placed retains moisture produced by the user's foot. Because the portions of footwear cannot typically be separated, the moisture often does not evaporate from within the cavity of the footwear, thereby resulting in odors.

The implementations described herein resolve the problem of moisture remaining in the cavity of the footwear by providing a simple way for different portions of an item of footwear to be separated, thereby facilitating more air circulation and resulting in evaporation. In some implementations, the upper portion of an item of footwear may be removable from a lower portion of the footwear. The upper portion of the footwear may include one or more of the toe cap, vamp, tongue, and/or quarter. The lower portion of the footwear may include one or more of the insole, outsole, heel, and/or welt. The upper portion of the footwear may be removably coupled to the lower portion of the footwear through use of one or more fasteners, such as, but not limited to, zippers, hook and loop (e.g., VELCRO®), snaps, hooks, clasps, and/or a removable string.

Removal of the upper portion of the footwear improves air circulation in and around both the interior and the exterior of the materials that make up the footwear, thereby facilitating evaporation of moisture buildup and the reduction of odor caused by a user's use of the footwear. The footwear may be any type of footwear utilized by humans and/or other animals. For example, the footwear may be a dress shoe, boot, running shoes, high-heel shoes, sandals, athletic shoe, or any other type of footwear that has both an upper portion and a lower portion that when joined formed a cavity or opening into which a foot may be placed.

FIG. 1 is an example representation of an item of footwear 100, according to an implementation. As shown, the item of footwear 100 has an upper portion that includes a vamp 104 and a heel 106. The item of footwear 100 also includes a lower portion that includes an insole (not shown) and an outsole 108. The upper portion and the lower portion are removably coupled with a fastener 102. In the illustrated implementation, the fastener 102 is a zipper that extends substantially around the perimeter of the exterior of the upper potion and the lower portion of the item of footwear 100.

In one implementation, the fastener 102 is placed on the exterior surface of the footwear and extends around the perimeter of the footwear 100 just above the outsole 108 of the item of footwear 100. A first half of the fastener 102 is coupled to the upper portion of the item of footwear 100 and the mating, or second half of the fastener 102, is coupled to the lower portion of the item of footwear 100. When the upper half of the fastener 102 and the lower half of the fastener 102 are joined or mated together (e.g., the teeth of a zipper are joined together) the upper portion of the footwear 100 is secured to the lower portion of the footwear 100, forming a cavity 110 into which a user's foot may be placed. When the two mating portions of the fastener 102 are separated, the upper portion of the item of footwear 100 is detached from the lower portion of the item of footwear 100, thereby allowing increased airflow in and around the different portions of the item of footwear 100.

In other implementations, the fastener 102 may be coupled to the interior of the upper portion and the interior of the lower portion of the item of footwear 100. In this implementation, when the upper portion and the lower portion of the item of footwear are joined, the fastener 102 is not visible from the exterior of the item of footwear 100, thereby creating a seamless look to the exterior of the item of footwear 100. In another example, if the fastener 102 is a hook and loop fastener (e.g., VELCRO®), the hook portion of the fastener may be attached to the exterior of the upper portion of the item of footwear 100 and the loop portion of the fastener 102 may be attached to the interior of the lower portion of the item of footwear 100. In such an example, when the hook and loop portion of the fastener 102 are joined together, the upper portion and the lower portion of the item of footwear are coupled forming a cavity 110. Likewise, because the different portions of the fastener 102 are on opposing sides of the upper portion and lower portion of the item of footwear, the fastener is not visible when the upper portion and the lower portion are joined.

While the above examples illustrates attaching the hook portion of a hook and loop fastener to the exterior of the upper portion and attaching the loop portion to the interior of the lower portion, in other implementations different configurations may be utilized. For example, the hook portion may be attached to the interior of the upper portion and the loop portion may be coupled to the exterior of the outer portion. Alternatively, the loop portion may be coupled to the interior of the upper portion and the hook portion may be coupled to the exterior of the lower portion. In another example, the loop portion may be coupled to the exterior of the upper portion and the hook portion may be coupled to the interior of the lower portion.

FIG. 2 is an example representation of a top down view of a lower portion 200 of an item of footwear 100 when detached from an upper portion of the item of footwear 100, according to an implementation. As shown, when the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100 is separated from the upper portion of the item of footwear 100, the insole 202 of the item of footwear 100 is exposed to allow airflow in and around the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100, thereby facilitating improved evaporation and drying of moisture on or in the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100.

As shown in FIG. 2, a first half 102A of the fastener 102 is detached from a second half (not shown) of the fastener and coupled to the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear. In some implementations, a protective barrier (not shown) may be incorporated into the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear and positioned such that when the upper portion of the item of the footwear and the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear are joined using the fastener, the protective barrier covers the portion of the fastener on the inner side, or cavity, of the item of footwear. The protective barrier may provide protection from water, air or other foreign matter entering the item of footwear through the fastener. Likewise, the protective barrier may provide a cushion between the fastener and the user's foot, thereby reducing any likelihood of a blister.

FIG. 3 is an example representation of a top down view of an interior 302 of the upper portion 300 of an item of footwear 100 when detached from the lower portion 200 (FIG. 2) of the item of footwear 100, according to an implementation. As shown, when the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100 is separated from the lower portion of the item of footwear 100, the interior 302 of the upper portion 300 is exposed to allow airflow in and around the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100, thereby facilitating improved evaporation and drying of moisture on or in the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100.

As shown in FIG. 3, a second half 102B of the fastener 102 is detached from the first half 102A of the fastener 102 and coupled to the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100. In some implementations, a protective barrier (not shown) may be incorporated into the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear and positioned such that when the upper portion 300 of the item of the footwear 100 and the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100 are joined, the protective barrier covers the portion of the fastener on the inner side, or cavity, of the item of footwear 100. The protective barrier may provide protection from water, air or other foreign matter entering the item of footwear through the fastener 102. Likewise, the protective barrier may provide a cushion between the fastener 102 and the user's foot, thereby reducing any likelihood of a blister.

FIG. 4 is another example representation of an item of footwear 100, according to an implementation. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the upper portion 300 and the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100 are partially joined by the fastener 102 that extends around the perimeter of the item of footwear. In this example, the fastener 102 is a zipper that begins at the base of the heel 106 and extends around the perimeter of the item of footwear 100 just above the outsole 108 and the insole 202 of the lower portion 200 of item of footwear 100 and just around the perimeter of the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100. Utilizing a fastener to allow the removal and/or attachment of the upper portion 300 of an item of footwear with a lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100 allows a user to separate the two portions to facilitate drying. In addition, if one of the portions of the item of footwear becomes damaged, that portion may be replaced without having to replace the entire item of footwear 100. For example, if the lower portion 200 of the item of footwear 100 becomes damaged but the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear is not damaged, rather than replacing the entire item of footwear 100, the user may replace the damaged lower portion with a new lower portion that can mate with the fastener of the upper portion 300 of the item of footwear 100.

Not only is the ability to separately replace the upper portion 300 and/or lower portion 200 more cost effective and a better use of resources, in some implementations, different portions of items of footwear may be mixed and matched to create a larger combination of styles of items of footwear available to the user. For example, if a user has two pairs of items of footwear, pair A and pair B, both of which have upper portions and lower portions that can be separated using a fastener, the upper portions of the different pairs of footwear can be interchanged with the lower portion of the other pairs of footwear. For example, rather than mating the lower portion of pair A with the upper portion of pair A, the user could mate the lower portion of pair A with the upper portion of pair B, thereby creating a different style of footwear from the combination of the two pairs of footwear. The ability to interchange portions of items of footwear allows for multiple fashion options. For example, the upper portion 300 can be coupled to a leather soled bottom portion 200, removed and reattached to a rubber soled bottom portion 200. The upper portion can be any style, material, color and/or combination of materials and colors. Likewise, the lower portion can be any style, materials, color and/or combination of materials and colors.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that, although specific implementations have been described herein for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the appended claims and the elements recited therein. In addition, while certain aspects are presented below in certain claim forms, the inventors contemplate the various aspects in any available claim form. Various modifications and changes may be made as would be obvious to a person skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. It is intended to embrace all such modifications and changes and, accordingly, the above description to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An item of footwear, comprising: an upper portion; a lower portion; and a fastener, wherein the fastener is configured to removably attach the upper portion and the lower portion.
 2. The item of footwear of claim 1, wherein the upper portion is completely separated from the lower portion when the fastener is not joined.
 3. The item of footwear of claim 1, wherein the upper portion is at least one of a toe cap, a vamp, a tongue, or a quarter.
 4. The item of footwear of claim 1, wherein the lower portion is at least one of an insole, an outsole, a heel, or a welt.
 5. The item of footwear of claim 1, wherein the fastener is at least one of a zipper, a hook and loop, a snap, a hook, or a removable string.
 6. A item of footwear, comprising: an upper portion; a lower portion; and a fastener, wherein the fastener is configured to removably attach the upper portion from the lower portion and includes: a first half that is coupled to the upper portion; and a second half that is coupled to the lower portion.
 7. The item of footwear of claim 6, wherein the item of footwear is at least one of a dress shoe, a boot, a running shoe, an athletic shoe, a high-heel shoe, or a sandal.
 8. The item of footwear of claim 6, wherein the first half of the fastener extends substantially around a first perimeter of the upper portion.
 9. The item of footwear of claim 8, wherein the second half of the fastener extends substantially around second perimeter of the lower portion.
 10. The item of footwear of claim 9, wherein the first half and the second half, when joined secure the upper portion and the lower portion together and form a cavity.
 11. The item of footwear of claim 6, wherein the first half of the fastener is coupled to an inside surface of the upper portion.
 12. The item of footwear of claim 11, wherein the second half of the fastener is coupled to an inside surface of the lower portion.
 13. The item of footwear of claim 12, wherein first half and the second half of the fastener are not visible from an exterior of the item of footwear when the first half and the second half of the fastener are joined.
 14. The item of footwear of claim 6, further comprising: a protective barrier coupled to the lower portion and positioned such that when the first half of the fastener is joined with the second half of the fastener the protective barrier covers the fastener on an inner side of the item of footwear.
 15. The item of footwear of claim 14, wherein the protective barrier provides at least one of a cushion or a barrier.
 16. The item of footwear of claim 6, further comprising: a protective barrier coupled to the upper portion and positioned such that when the first half of the fastener is joined with the second half of the fastener the protective barrier covers the fastener on an inner side of the item of footwear.
 17. The item of footwear of claim 16, wherein the protective barrier provides at least one of a cushion or a barrier.
 18. The item of footwear of claim 6, wherein the fastener is at least one of a zipper, a hook and loop, a snap, a hook, or a removable string. 